Disclaimer: None of the Harry Potter verse is mine, nor are the characters.

AN: I was mildly re-reading the scene from OotP where Molly all but accuses
Sirius of pretending that Harry is James and I thought, that's a tad
unfair. Maybe there was more to Sirius's 'best friend talking' then met the
eye. So here you are, this is what maybe –I- thought Sirius saw Harry as.

As the final Order members bid themselves goodbye Sirius was left at the
table in the kitchen of 12 Grimmauld Place with only his thoughts as
company.

He was slouched forwards slightly, his elbows resting on his knees as he
weaved his fingers in amongst the black hair hanging way past his
shoulders. He listened to his breathing that echoed slightly within the
cavern of his body as he slowly worked out the turmoil of thoughts parading
around in his mind.

They'd told Harry as much as they could tonight, although he would've liked
to have told his Godson everything. Harry was just such an important part
of the current war that to him it was a foolish move of Dumbledore's to
keep the boy in the dark. A move he felt would have tragic results.

But then, who would listen to him? After all, they all thought he was just
that slightly bit crazy.

/'Fuck them'/ he thought bitterly as he slid his hands down to rest cupped
around his neck, / 'They only see what they want to see.'/

Sighing he stood and made his way over to a cabinet where he pulled out a
glass. Opening another cupboard he then pulled out a bottle of Firewhiskey,
pouring himself a nightcap when Lupin walked back in. He smirked as his
friend fell into a chair with a long, suffering sigh.
"Please don't make me play referee between two adults, it's awfully
embarrassing in front of the children." The werewolf sighed as he pressed
the palms of his hands into his eyes to fend off any weariness.

Chuckling, Sirius moved to take the seat beside his boyhood friend and
offered Lupin another glass he had poured. Lupin took it gratefully.

"I can say something childish to that but you'll probably berate me." The
animagi said in slight amusement as he leant back, sipping the drink and
placing his feet up on the table.

"Try me." Said Lupin, eyeing his friend with a hint of amusement in his own
eyes.

"She started it." Sirius said simply before sipping his drink again, a
smirk pulling at the corner of his lips. Lupin laughed.

"You –both- started it. Why'd you go and invite Harry to ask whatever he
wanted? You knew he'd fire everything and anything." There was a hint of
the seriousness from before in Lupin's voice as he tenderly sipped the
alcohol.

"Because despite the fact that he is 15 he really is more mature then you
lot give him credit for." Sirius said as he frowned into his drink.

"We're only trying to protect him." Said Lupin in a tone of voice that
indicated that this was a familiar conversation.

"From what? Death and pain? He's already seen it, no matter how hard I
tried last year to stop that from happening."

A silence hung in the air as they both sipped their drinks quietly until
Remus hesitantly hovered his glass over the table before deciding to set it
down and turned his body to face Sirius.

"You –don't- see him as a substitute for James do you?" He asked in an
unsure tone and with disbelief written all over his worn features Sirius
set down his glass too.

"I can't believe you just asked me that." He said in a quiet voice making
Lupin give him an apologetic look.

"Well it was just, you –do- talk about him as though you're the best of
friends planning some great prank..."

"Remus, mate, Harry is my Godson, yes, but he –is- also my friend as well
as..." Sirius cut himself off with a snap of his jaw like he was going to
admit something he didn't quite want to tell his friend.

"He has never known me as a parent figure which is what we're trying to
build now, only –Molly- keeps trying to make me think I'm less than worthy
of the title 'Harry's parent'!

"Sirius, surely you don't believe that." Lupin said with a saddened look in
his eyes but Sirius merely frowned at him.

"Harry –is- my friend in the sense of I like his company just to chat but I
also want to be the one that he goes to when stuff gets hard, and he –does-
Moony! But...I think that gets to Molly."

Lupin watched his friend silently for a moment before reaching over to
grasp Sirius's shoulder in a brotherly manner.

"I'm sorry Padfoot, I meant no offence."

At first Sirius tried to remain upset with him but eventually with a sigh
and a roll of his eyes he grasped Remus's shoulder in turn.

"Ah not like I can't blame you."

They smiled at one another before pulling back. As they both stood from
their chairs Molly Weasley came back through with a frown on her face.

"I think the boys are talking." She said to Lupin then turned her scowl on
Sirius, "You just –had- to let slip about the weapon didn't you!"

Closing his eyes and counting to ten Sirius then looked at the plump woman.

"I apologise," he said politely in a strained voice, "I didn't mean to
mention that."

"Yes well, in the end though you shouldn't really have mentioned anything
should you?" She said through gritted teeth and with a great grunt of
despair Remus turned on his heel.

"That's it, I'm going to bed." And with that said he left the room, quickly
casting a silencing charm around the room should a shouting match break
out.

Sirius turned back to the seething redhead.

"They're all adults Molly..."

"They're 15!"

"And have seen more then most of us here, especially Harry!"

They glared at one another, hands balled into fists by their sides as cold
azure eyes glared into hard hazel ones.

"He.Is.NOT.James!" Molly said tensely and it took all Sirius had not to
shake her.

"I –know- that, when are you going to believe me?" He hissed back. "Harry
is –my- Godson and I felt he had a right to know why you had imprisoned
him."

Molly gave a sharp bitter laugh as she turned from him before turning back
with a fierce glare on her face.

"Then as a Godfather do your duty! You're a parent but as it has been I've
been there for him more then you have!"

The sharp words stung him painfully and at first he turned away from her
running his trembling hands through his hair, then he turned back to her
with a new fire in his eyes.

"Stop it." He said lowly and she frowned at him.

"Stop what?" She hissed back. "It's true, I understand Azkaban was an
obstacle between you and him but even now you act as though..."

"I DON'T SEE HIM AS JAMES!"

The outburst startled Molly and as she was stunned into silence she took
him Sirius's appearance.

His white face was a sharp contrast from his midnight black hair and his
whole body trembled as he shook with surpressed emotion. But his eyes, his
ocean blue haunted eyes, held a great deal of pain in them.

"I don't know why you feel you should cast me down and take Harry as your
own but STOP IT!"

She watched stunned as the azure gaze became very slightly damp with unshed
tears.

"HE IS –MY- BABY!" His voice hitched slightly.

The sentence threw her off so much she collapsed back into a chair.

"It was –me- who held him the day he was born, -me- who watched his
wonderful green eyes open for the first time, -me- whose finger he first
placed his tiny hand around and I swore then I would protect him no matter
what!"

Molly opened her mouth to say something but Sirius continued.

"I watched him pull himself up for the first time, heard his first word,
his first laugh, his first cry! He was born a Potter but in my heart he is
–my- baby boy and I felt so horrible for thinking that when his parents sat
not two feet away discussing the Fidelous charm with Dumbledore!"

"So just, just –stop-! You have seven children, let me keep my baby!"

Throughout the speech his voice had cracked with the emotion pouring into
every emotion and finally, his strength leaving him, he fell into a chair.

A pregnant silence hung heavily in the air until after five minutes Molly's
quiet voice broke through the air.

"I never knew."

"Yeah well you never wanted to did you?" He said bitterly as once more he
leaned his elbows onto his knees burying his face in his hands.

More silence followed until a scrape of a chair and a door closing
indicated that the woman had left. Still shaking Sirius looked up.

Not even to Remus had he admitted the fatherly love he had for Harry and
now he'd finally broken down, shouting it at a woman that although he knew
generally cared for his Godson, had no idea what she was taking from him...or
tried to at least.

It wasn't from the moment that he saw Harry in his third year that this
affection had started like everyone believed but it was in fact from that
one time when James Potter, flushed with pride, had turned with a tiny
bundle in his arms and handed Sirius a treasure worth more then anything in
the world.

/(1981)

"Here you are Padfoot, your Godson." James said carefully transferring the
tiny human safely into the emotionally stunned Sirius's arms.

Nervously Sirius cupped the tiny body against his chest and with a final
glance at his best friend looked down at the baby boy in his arms.

He felt a gasp leave his mouth as he stared longingly at the tiny face,
tiny toes, tiny fingers. He could feel his eyes moistening as he watched
the little face snuggle against his chest, his heart, and he held him
tighter to him.

"He's beautiful." He whispered and James chuckled beside him.

"I know."

("I'll protect you my beautiful baby boy") Sirius thought silently as the
little face twitched and Harry's eyes flickered open for the first time to
stare right at the smiling man whose arms held him close.

/

(Present)

"He's my baby boy." Sirius muttered as with a final weary hand rub down his
face he stood to watch Harry sleep for a couple of minutes before he too
would climb into bed to rest.

The author would like to thank you for your continued support. Your review has been posted.